Tablet of the Sacred Night (Lawḥ‑i Laylatu’l‑Quds) is an extended prayer that is recited on the “sacred night,” which is the evening of the declaration of the Bab (May 22).
Baha’u’llah revealed this extended prayer for the “sacred night,” the night of the Bab’s declaration. It is commemorated each year on the evening of May 22, two hours after sunset. Although the prayer honors that holy moment, its voice reaches beyond a single date. It speaks to a devotion that continues, inviting the reader into a living night of remembrance and nearness.
The Tablet of the Sacred Night opens with a sweeping invocation of God’s saving power across sacred history — Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad. These figures appear not as distant memories, but as signs of a mercy that still moves through the world. From there, the prayer becomes a rising stream of praise. Each divine name opens into new images of generosity, unity, and awakening.
As the night deepens, the tone grows more intimate. Baha’u’llah prays for those who remain wakeful in devotion: that their grief may turn to joy, their distress to delight, and their hearts into gardens where wisdom can grow. He asks for steadfastness, purity of heart, unity, and a love so constant that no force in heaven or earth could turn the soul away.
Throughout the tablet, the language rises and falls like breath — petition, praise, longing, and assurance woven together. The prayer is meant not only to be read, but to be entered. Although Baha’u’llah revealed the prayer for the sacred night of the Bab’s declaration, it can be recited at any time. It captures not only a moment in history, but a spiritual condition the soul may return to again and again.
For further details, see Juan Cole: Tablet of the Sacred Night: Introduction and Translation.